Switch Exam booked for Feb 23, need input

for anyone doing the switch exam, are there any last minutes tips/subject you think i should cover?
form my understand only few subject were elusive to many test takers such as SNMP, SYSLOG and IP SLA, i am trying to cover the design bit at the moment,

please share your thoughts

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*BB*

I think you could answer that best since you just took it. Look at your score breakdowns and go from there.

Panzer919

My advice would be to grab the blue print and create yourself an outline from memory then see if you get stuck anywhere. If you find yourself having a hard time reiterating something you have read in a detailed outline then you might want to look back over it.

/usr

I agree...

I don't mean for this to come across the wrong way, but you seem a little (maybe a lot) unprepared for this exam.

Failing should have given you a better idea than we ever could as to what areas you know, and what areas you need to improve on.

The FLG is actually a fantastic guide in regards to design, and not just in the first chapter which is designated solely to it. Each chapter includes a large focus on overall design and implementation for whatever objective the chapter is covering, it's not just a book full of commands after the first chapter.

My suggestion would be to thoroughly read, from cover to cover, the FLG. It doesn't seem like you have a great idea of what areas you're falling short on, which is not a good way to pass the exam on your next go.

I would strongly recommend that you reschedule this exam until you've had a change to at least read through the FLG and confirm that you know everything in it.

tndfr

/usr wrote: »

I agree...

I don't mean for this to come across the wrong way, but you seem a little (maybe a lot) unprepared for this exam.

Failing should have given you a better idea than we ever could as to what areas you know, and what areas you need to improve on.

The FLG is actually a fantastic guide in regards to design, and not just in the first chapter which is designated solely to it. Each chapter includes a large focus on overall design and implementation for whatever objective the chapter is covering, it's not just a book full of commands after the first chapter.

My suggestion would be to thoroughly read, from cover to cover, the FLG. It doesn't seem like you have a great idea of what areas you're falling short on, which is not a good way to pass the exam on your next go.

I would strongly recommend that you reschedule this exam until you've had a change to at least read through the FLG and confirm that you know everything in it.

you concluded i am not prepared for the exam just by me asking for tips or elusive subjects that might come up on an exam......?!

without break NDA, there were couple of questions in my exam that werent on the curriculum , luckily i remembered them from my CCNA days

i agree FLG is an amazing book but i still think the style is not as good as Hucaby's, structure seemed a bit haphazard...

IMO CBT is just a not good enough (like i mentioned on a different post, i only watch it when i want to relax and be entertained)

Panzer919

tndfr wrote: »

you concluded i am not prepared for the exam just by me asking for tips or elusive subjects that might come up on an exam......?

If you have taken the test it should have told you where you need to focus. Asking people in this section which area's are "elusive" is like asking if it is hard. There are some people who thoroughly read through all the material multiple times, take very detailed notes, lab for hours watch all the CBT Nuggets or Trainsignal video's and even read some material that is outside the box (cisco docs on specific topics), and there are some who read through the material watch a few video's and do some labs. Now I'm not saying you need to become a hermit to pass this test but those of us who spend countless hours reading through the books, doing labs and researching know where our weaknesses lye most of the time. If we think we know something and we take a test and fail, we look at the print out, figure out where we were weakest and drill it into our heads.

So I have to agree with /usr, if you have to ask what area's to study then you are not prepared. You have seen first hand what the test is like and have the print out telling you where you are weakest. That piece of paper will do you more good when it comes to identifying area's to focus on than any person on this forum. We are all different and we all excel at different things so someone may tell you VTP but you are really good at it so it wouldn't do you any good.

Now that I have said my long winded piece I will address the second thing you asked about, Tips. The only tips I can give you without violating anything is take your time and check your answers. If you see a question and you think you know the answer read through the other answers and quietly to yourself explain why the others are wrong. I have gotten dinged on a few questions where I flew through and didnt check my answers. If you can explain why all the others are wrong it shows that you have solid knowledge of that subject. The teacher at the Net Acad drilled that into my head, he would always tell us that it is more important to know why the other answers are wrong than why the one is right.

Hopefully this didn't come off brash because it was certainly not intended that way. Everyone on this forum wants to see you succeed, but when you have been in the industry as long as some of us you can tell by the questions people ask if they are ready or not.

/usr

I'm honestly not sure what that first sentence is supposed to mean...but I reached that conclusion based on the last couple threads you've started and the comments you made in them.

There's no need to get defensive, or even take my advice if you don't want to. You asked, I figured I'd take the time to try and help.

That said, I never used the official cert guide, so I can't say how it compares to the FLG. If you feel like the FLG is a waste of time, then don't read it, but I think it would most certainly help if you haven't read it.

You seemed to imply that your weak area was design (actually, I think you blatantly said this), so I told you my opinion regarding the FLG and it's overall approach to design. I'll admit it is a bit tough to read at times, but I think it's worth it.

Best of luck to you if you attempt the exam next week!

/usr

Hopefully this didn't come off brash because it was certainly not intended that way. Everyone on this forum wants to see you succeed, but when you have been in the industry as long as some of us you can tell by the questions people ask if they are ready or not.

No, it didn't. You hit the nail on the head with this post.

tndfr

thank you both for the advice, i have been dipping in and out of FLG before but i am now going through it thoroughly.

when you fail, your confidence takes hit and you start wondering what else you have missed, am using countless materials but i keep emphasising on Hucabys book because it is by far the best style of writing (though the book itself is missing 4 crucial topics such as SNMP, SYSLOG, Design and IP SLA).

the lab environment i have simulated most things apart from wireless, with IP SLA i used the legacy RTR command (does the same thing different syntax)...

i will let you know of the outcome next week, in the mean time i'll post anything i am not sure of in this thread.

Panzer919

I can totally relate to having your confidence take a hit. I failed the second NA test 2x for a couple different reasons, my daughter was in the NICU for two months and I kept rushing through the test.

I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.
Thomas A. Edison

Had he lost confidence you may be reading by candle light :P Fact is Everyone fails, its life, but its how you get back up that defines the kind of person you are. Study hard, if you get stuck on a topic ask questions and you will whoop that tests behind!

tndfr

Panzer919 wrote: »

when you have been in the industry as long as some of us you can tell by the questions people ask if they are ready or not.

agree and take on board everything you said apart from the above,
i am not too sure about that statement... doesnt serve anyone apart pigeonholing people and hindering their development.... the time you spend on a job doesnt mean much if you dont continually develop your skills, i have people working with me that fit that scenario and the amount of time they have been passed over for promotions....almost laughable...

@ /user
i must admit though, been here for two years and this is the first time i get some sombre/pessimistic replies.... based on two post i have submitted (a bit scary dont you think?)

/usr

My personality can't help but shine blindingly through onto this board at times, so if I offended you, I do apologize. I just believe in being brutally honest, as opposed to kind first and then partially honest second. It wasn't my intention to insult you, or offend you, and I don't think my post was necessarily pessimistic, just perhaps not exactly what you were looking to hear at the time. The fact is, I was honestly trying to help you or else I wouldn't have bothered posting, because I often don't.

My advice comes to you from someone who has been studying for this exam since June of 2009, when it was still BCMSN. I've covered a lot of material and done a lot of reading since that time regarding what's on this exam and the general perception people seem to have of it. I've also browsed this forum enough to get a general feel for the knowledge level of people, at least as much as you can online.

I don't think that's being scary, or intimidating, or pessimistic, or anything negative in any way. You asked for opinions, I gave you mine and told you to take it for what it's worth.

lrb

When I passed this I only passed by a few points.. the first time I have gotten under 800 on a Cisco exam and I studied my arse off for it. I read the OCG several times few and watche the old BCMSN CBT nuggets, and used my lab at home and the beefier switches in our test racks at work. We use most of the switch security features at work too, so that definately helps being able to see how these things work in the real world. I thought out of all the exams I had done prior to that one, this would have been the easiest based on all the effort I had put into it.

Before I took the exam I didn't review any material on the 'Plan, Prepare,...' stuff and I think thats probably what hit me the most, as - in my opinion - there is no silver-bullet framework for this kind of stuff. At work we come up with a proof of concept solution first, then start planning integration, functional requirements, budget, etc... I'm 100% certain other places don't follow this method. Cisco seems to opt for the PPDIOO framework for this kind of stuff, so make sure you know this stuff as no doubt there will be a question on it.

Anyway, I think David Hucaby (author of the SWITCH OCG) has a blog with some of the design crap on it anyway. If you have Wendell Odom's book for ROUTE, I also think there are some general plan, prepare type stuff throughout.. surely some if it will be applicable to the SWITCH exam too.

You also said that you have covered the 'out of left park' kind of stuff like IP SLA, SNMP, syslog, so given this plus all of hte work you have put into the more central concepts like R/STP, VLANs, etherchannel, etc, I think you'll be OK for the exam.

Best of luck mate.

Oh and be prepared for them to ask you some basic questions on routing protocol implementation.. I have seen quite a few posts about people being suprised that they had to configure a routing protocol that they would have learned in the CCNA being on the exam. Even though neither of the books probably discuss it, CCNA knowledge is assumed/is a pre-requisite for the exam.

lrb

tndfr wrote: »

@ /user
i must admit though, been here for two years and this is the first time i get some sombre/pessimistic replies.... based on two post i have submitted (a bit scary dont you think?)

I think based on how many threads he's seen posted on here about people failing SWITCH, and also the lengthy (mostly negative) discussions on the CLN for this exam, he gave you an opnion based on what he's seen going on. I dont think he was being sombre/pessimistic, just realistic. Now get back to those books

Panzer919

tndfr wrote: »

i am not too sure about that statement... doesnt serve anyone apart pigeonholing people and hindering their development.... the time you spend on a job doesnt mean much if you dont continually develop your skills, i have people working with me that fit that scenario and the amount of time they have been passed over for promotions....almost laughable...

I have been studying Cisco for over 5+ years, IT industry since 98 and I'm only 28. I have had to work my rear end off to get to where I am and I am still pushing myself to know more. The reason why I made that statement was that I have found that generally people in this section of the forum have not only been in the industry for a while but still continue to keep their skills up, those are the people I was referring to. I am certainly not pigeonholing or hindering anyones development and to insinuate that I am is insulting. If someone chooses not to continue to further their skills thats their problem not mine. I have seen a lot of people fired or laid off because they thought their skillset was adequate.

My opinion is honest and straight forward, I don't believe in sugar coating or beating around the bush. That was the whole reason why I apologized in my first post.